There's a new point guard at Cardinal Stritch, and his name is Marquise Harrison.

Harrison, a transfer from Waite, is fitting right in with the Cardinals, according to second-year coach Dave Rieker.

“Marquise has been doing a great job adjusting to Stritch,” Rieker said. “He has developed into a leader on and off the court. Marquise just gets more and more comfortable with each game he plays. With him sitting out a year, it has taken some time for him to adjust to (varsity) basketball.”

Cardinal Stritch senior guard Marquise Harrison drives to the basket in the Cardinal's 62-60 overtime loss at Genoa. (Press photo by Doug Karns/KateriSchools .org

Harrison, a 6-foot-2 senior, is averaging 30 minutes a game and leads Stritch in scoring at 16 points per game plus he is averaging four steals and four assists.

The Cardinals were supposed to get another transfer from Waite, 5-6 junior Dexter Williams, but Williams has yet to become eligible because of residency issues, according to Rieker. Harrison and Williams sat out last season as part of the transfer process.

The Cardinals, who were 7-15 a year ago, have a 5-4 overall mark and were 2-2 in the Toledo Area Athletic Conference through Jan. 12.

Stritch's other top scorers are Robbie Beiker, who is averaging 9.7 points, and Conner Kelsey, who is averaging nine points and five rebounds.

The TAAC, which added Gibsonburg this year from the now-defunct Suburban Lakes League, is proving to be one of the better small-school conferences for boys’ basketball in Northwest Ohio.

Two years ago, TAAC champion Ottawa Hills reached the state semifinals, and Toledo Christian is a regular participant at the regional level.

“Our league is by far the most underrated conference around,” Rieker said. “Only (a few) points separate the top teams from the bottom ones. On any given night, anybody can beat anybody.”

Rieker said he'd like to see his team improve in a few areas right away.

“We play hard every minute of every game,” he said. “Effort has never been a problem. We need to improve our rebounding, be more physical and make free throws with consistency. We have been leading in every game this year, yet we have found ways to give games away. Mainly, by not making free throws.”

Stritch's boys program should be getting a boost in years to come thanks to a beefed up freshman program. Last year's freshman squad had only seven players.

“We have had a freshman team, just not a lot of kids were trying out,” Rieker said. “This year we had to cut some kids because we had a good number try out. You always need building blocks, and without a freshman program you are behind other schools.

“This year we have several freshmen on the jayvee team and one freshman (Austin Adams) on varsity. Ron Gladieux is the coach and he's doing a great job.”

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